Study Says Those Over 40 Should Only Work 3 Days a Week

Probably the best thing about working a 9-5 is that you at least have the weekend as a perk. Working 40 or more hours a week isn’t easy, and no wonder we’re entitled to weekend and holidays to get a chance to recuperate.

A New Research

However, a new research study has concluded some pretty interesting consequences that are related to working long hours and its impact on quality and performance.

If you work 40 hours or more a week, you start getting used to it and chances are, even if you reach 40, you still get stuck in the rut until retirement (minus the lucky few!). According to a research study by the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, those over 40 should not be working 40 hours a week, and they have a good reason behind it.

Working 25 hours is better!

The study conducted a comparison between the number of hours that people work and their performance using psychological test which measured both concentration and short-term memory. They found that working an approximate 25 hours a week boosted performance whilst working more than that had a negative impact.

There’s no doubt that those over 40 require mental stimulation, but too much of it can have an adverse impact. The study found that those who worked over 60 hours a week had a lower score on cognitive performance than people who are unemployed, shocking!

Conflicting Opinion

Perhaps a conflicting opinion is by Professor Geraint Hones who in his interview with the BBC said that because he research looks only at over-40s, [it] cannot make the claim that over-40s are different from any other workers.”

Simply, he means that the study should have included those under 40 as well to provide more accurate results. They may perhaps find that those under 40 suffer from longer weeks too!

I guess it’s time to tell your over 40 friends about cutting that time – share with them this article and see what they think!